The introduction of the consumer-level film camera changed the way we saw our world, mesmerizing the public with life-like images and opening up an era of increasingly visual information. However, as imaging technologies continued to improve, the advent of inexpensive digital cameras would eventually render traditional film cameras obsolete, along with the sepia tones and grainy pictures of yesteryear. However, the digital camera offered the one thing that had eluded the film camera—spontaneity and instant gratification. Pictures could be taken, erased, saved, instantly viewed or printed and otherwise utilized without delay.
The quality of digital image technology has now improved to the point that very few users miss the film camera. Indeed, most cell phones, smart phones, tablets, and other portable electronic devices include a built-in digital camera. Nonetheless, despite the unquestioned dominance of digital imaging today, one requirement remains unchanged from the days of yore: the requirement to focus the camera.
Today's digital cameras often provide an auto focus function that automatically places portions of a scene in focus. However, the portions of a scene that appear in focus are generally those selected by the user via touch screen input, or, alternatively, those that yield the greatest focus value. Unfortunately, the requirement for the user to hand-select the object of interest introduces an extra step and accompanying delay when the user is attempting to photograph the object of interest. Similarly, the focus value magnitude achieved at different distances is generally not helpful in identifying which object in the scene is likely of interest. For example, consider a flower situated in a field of grass; the flower may have a lower focus value than the surrounding grass, but the flower is more likely to be the object of interest in the scene.
It will be appreciated that this Background section represents the observations of the inventors, which are provided simply as a research guide to the reader. As such, nothing in this Background section is intended to represent, or to fully describe, prior art.